The Connor Group is expected to close its purchase of Ashton Brook apartments in Franklin today. / Submitted

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The Tennessean

A Dayton, Ohio-based real estate investment firm is expected to close today on its purchase of Ashton Brook apartments in Franklin for more than $60 million, a record price for a multifamily housing property in the Nashville area this year.

The Connor Groupís acquisition of the 390-unit luxury apartment community reflects continued strong demand for the higher end of the market, said Woody McLaughlin, an investor and owner of apartments in the Nashville area. He also tracks statistics as a member of the Greater Nashville Apartment Association.

The deal would be the first here for Connor, which owns and operates roughly 14,000 luxury apartment units in nine markets, including Atlanta; Dallas and Austin, Texas; Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; and Cincinnati, Columbus and Dayton, Ohio. It joins national institutional investors New York Life and America First plus regional players including Greensboro, N.C.-based Carroll Investment Properties among others buying or looking to build apartments here.

Ashton Brook, built in 1996 and once called Crowne Brook and ALARA Brook, sits on 28 acres at 100 Gillespie Drive in Cool Springs. The community has one-, two- and three-bedroom units that rent on average for roughly $1,250 a month.